› added 12 years ago

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TIL in 1960 a man jumped out of a helium balloon from a height of 31km, near the edge of space, and fell for 15 minutes straight.

9w7ZX TIL R. Norris Williams survived the sinking of the Titanic clinging to an overturned lifeboat. The injuries to his legs were such the doctors aboard rescue ship suggested amputation. He refused and instead went on to recover his faculties and eventually winning the tennis Olympic gold medal in 1924.
Y77er TIL about the Haber–Bosch process which allows for the creation of ammonia easily. Which is one of the key factors in the massively increased agriculture ability of the modern era as the ammonia is often used in fertiliser.
gMxZ4 TIL that in 2019 the Topps trading card company released a set of baseball cards that also had Charles Martinet (Mario's Voice Actor : Card 171) and Ben Schwartz (Sonic's Voice Actor in the Movie : Card 173).
OmdY TIL after Serena and Venus Williams had claimed they could beat any man outside the top 200 at tennis, Karsten Braasch took them up on the challenge. Braasch played them fresh after finishing a round of golf and two beers, beating Serena 6-1 and Venus 6-2.
wrAP TIL that on a 1983 episode of Three’s Company, John Ritter’s scrotum falls out of his shorts. Viewer complained in 2001 and it was edited out. Ritter’s quote on this: “I’ve requested that they air both versions, edited and unedited, because sometimes you feel like a nut, and sometimes you don’t.”